Dubai is known worldwide as the city of the most futuristic skyline in the planet. It is home to not only the world’s tallest building, but also to accomplishments as significant as the biggest indoor amusement park, and the largest man-made archipelago.

Di-RES, the 2019 DIDI-in5 Residency Program, brought together students and faculty from Dubai Institute of Design and Innovation (DIDI) along with members and startups from incubator in5 for one common goal: to connect and translate the innovation of Dubai’s ever evolving skyline to smaller scales and bite-sized realities of the human experience.

Di-RES connects the macro dimensions of urban architecture to the micro level of programmable matter, presenting three projects: “Responsive Wearables”, “Touchable Holograms”, and “Sentient Environments”.

These projects have been developed over the course of an eight-week residency program at in5, a place known for being a birthplace of creative and innovative startups, where participants formed teams, conceived their ideas, learned new digital modeling skills, and received “FabLab” training and mentorship. This exhibition is in conjunction with Dubai Design Week, taking place at Dubai Design District (d3).

About in5

in5 is an enabling platform for entrepreneurs and startups that develops aspiring talent, nurtures a community of entrepreneurs, and helps startups grow. Launched by TECOM Group to foster innovation and entrepreneurship in Dubai and the wider region, in5 is a startup incubator operating across three industry verticals: tech, media and design. in5 facilitates the process of starting and growing a new venture by providing business set up, creative workspace, mentorship, workshops and events, as well as access to investors.

About DIDI

Dubai Institute of Design and Innovation (DIDI) provides an international learning environment encompassing innovation and knowledge to develop new design talent to contribute to the advancement of humanity. The University instills students with the confidence to take risks, push boundaries and challenge ways of thinking and making. All of this converges through its Bachelor of Design. The first integrated BDes of it’s kind in the region.